February 4
5 Tips for Managing Stress
By Denise Humphrey, Ph.D., www.DeniseHumphrey.com
We live in a high stress culture. Working long hours and always being “at the top of our game” professionally are often directly associated with our sense of worth and value. Our high-tech lifestyle ensures that we are always available to the boss, clients, co-workers and friends, which severely blurs the boundaries between our professional and personal lives. Many people take the laptop to bed and keep the blackberry on the bedside table. The American culture rewards hard work, and so we tend to comply. We work hard. All of this hard work leads to a great deal of stress — stress that most people do not know how to effectively manage.
5 Tips for Managing Stress
- Set Realistic Goals. Set clear and realistic daily, weekly and monthly goals. Create a checklist to ensure you stay on task and help you remain focused throughout your day. Refer to your list often and check off your accomplishments.
- Develop a Strategy. Stress is our body’s reaction to being overwhelmed and under prepared. While it is not possible to eliminate stress completely, we can reduce to the degree and frequency of stress by being well prepared and having back-up plans for our important, “must-do” events.
- Make Exercise a Priority. Exercise releases healthy, feel-good endorphins in our body and is an excellent source for releasing stress. The time spent exercising can also be a time for gathering thoughts and mentally preparing for the day. Walking, yoga and Pilates are all excellent exercises that allow for quiet and reflective contemplation, which will ease your mind and relax your body.
- Nourish Your Body. A high caffeine and fast food diet poses additional and unnecessary stress on the body. Just like your car, your body needs high grade fuel in order to function. Allow yourself to feel and perform your best by feeding your body and brain a healthy and nutrient rich diet.
- Engage a Therapist. Sometimes the amount of stress or source of stress is greater than what you may be able to manage on your own. A professional therapist can work with you to help you gain control over the stressors in your life and understand what may be reality-based stressors versus self-imposed stressors and develop a plan for navigating the stress in your life.
Denise Humphrey, Ph.D.
Schedule an appointment with Dr. Humphrey today! 972-239-2490
CREDENTIALS
• Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology: Fielding Graduate University
• Master of Music in Piano Performance: University of Notre Dame
• Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance: Southern Methodist University
• License No. and State: 32345 Texas
• Board of Trustees, Dallas Foundation for Psychoanalysis
• Chair, Arts Committee for the Dallas Society for Psychoanalytic Psychology
• Member, National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology
